Weide said: "Nick is not only a very funny guy, but a very talented actor.

"I had no specific agenda to create a show for him, but out of the blue, an idea came to me that was entirely character-driven, and I immediately saw Nick as that character. I pitched it to him, and he said, 'Let's do it'."

Sky has commissioned a new Sky 1 comedy, Yonderland, from the team behind CBBC's Horrible Histories. Yonderland tells the story of 33-year-old mum who unexpectedly finds herself in an extraordinary world and will feature puppets from Jim Henson collaborators, Baker Coogan.

Sky has also commissioned a third run of Chris O'Dowd's Moone Boy, made by Steve Coogan's Baby Cow, Sprout and Hot Cod.

Mr Sloane will be made by Big Talk Productions and Weide's Whyaduck Productions. Yonderland is a Working Title Television production and will air on Sky 1 this autumn.